July 20 Writer Birthdays

1304 - Petrarch (born Francesco Petrarca) Italian poet and scholar who is considered one of the earliest humanists.1822 - Gregor Mendel, German-speaking Austrian scientist and monk who is considered the founder of modern genetics; he coined the terms "dominant" and "recessive" genes in his writings about his experiments with pea plants, such as his groundbreaking monograph, Experiments With Plant Hybrids.1901 - Elizabeth Dilys Powell, British journalist, author, and film critic.1951 - Paulette Bourgeois, Canadian author and illustrator of children's books, best known as creator of Franklin the turtle.1864 - Eric Axel Karlfeldt, Nobel Prize-winning Swedish symbolist poet, teacher, and journalist.1924 - Thomas Berger, American author of darkly comic novels, best known for his book Little Big Man.1927 - Simin Beh’bahāni (Persian: سیمین بهبهانی) Iranian poet who is one of the most prominent figures in modern Persian literature, twice nominated for the Nobel Prize.1930 - William H. Goetzmann, Pulitzer Prize-winning American historian known for his research into exploration and settlement of the American West.1933 - Cormac McCarthy, Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist and playwright, known for his books The Road, All the Pretty Horses, and No Country for Old Men.1936 - Alistair MacLeod, Canadian novelist, short-story writer, and academician;1953 - Thomas Friedman, American journalist and author who has won the Pulitzer Prize three times; known for his books on globalization, climate change, and the Middle East.1965 - Jess Walter, American author of novels, short stories, and nonfiction; he was a finalist for the National Book Award.1977 - Timothy Ferriss, American author, public speaker, and entrepreneur.

Catherine M. Petrini

Who Am I?

I am a published author of 28 books for children and young adults, a former magazine editor, and mom to an 8th-grader. My published works include 20 books for Sweet Valley High and other teen fiction series, all written under pseudonyms. My nonfiction kids' books, written under my own name, are on topics ranging from Dragons to Stonehenge to the Cherokee Indians. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, drawing, photography, traveling, overthrowing the governments of small countries, befriending dragons, slaying demons, and ruining my son's life by making him do his homework.